The Safehouse
by scrumptiousinternetllama
Summary: For Lexi. After receiving a tip from a listener of Potterwatch, Lee takes the risk and decides to visit the rumoured safe house... "Just as his eyes closed and sleep claimed him, he smiled at the thought of Luna listening to Potterwatch, and hoped that his show may have elicited a genuine smile whilst she had been listening."


**AN: For Lexi!**

 **Thank you for the opportunity to write these two again!**

The Safehouse

Lee turned down the hushed corridor, holding his breath as even his light footsteps managed to echo from the bare walls of the safe house. The freed prisoners from Malfoy Manor had been transported to different safe houses across the country, and Lee had come to know of this one after a source had contacted him via Potterwatch—and although he wanted the source to be right, the eery silence felt more like an attempt to lure him into a false sense of being alone—a trap. It was a risk he felt he had to take though; there was no guarantee the safe houses and their inhabitants were truly safe as, according to Kingsley, the wards hadn't been renewed since the first war, and without knowing where they were, it put the old prisoners in worrying situations.

A wind-chime sounded and Lee stopped in his tracks, feeling his pulse jumping wildly in his neck. There was a window open somewhere then… and someone had decorated somewhere. Following the noise with his wand drawn and ready behind his back, Lee advanced down the corridor until he reached a partly-open door. Peering through, Lee saw an open window—then a flash of silver, the door was opened, and a wand was at his throat.

"Lee?"

Lee opened his eyes in shock, not expecting his assailant to know his name—much less have an all too familiar dreamy voice. "Luna?"

"That's me," answered Luna, completely without sarcasm. "What are you doing here?"

Letting out a breath as his heart rate slowed to normal, he looked at the waifish young woman. The last time he had spoken to her, they were with Fred, George, and Ginny; he felt a pang in his chest as he realised just how long he had been on the run for—he wasn't a wanted man, but Lee was sure the Death Eaters were aware of Potterwatch by now, and it wasn't safe to stay in marked locations to broadcast anymore. She looked well, if a bit thinner than he last remembered her, and she didn't seem like she had been harmed by anyone—other than the small scratch on her cheek.

"A source who was reporting to Potterwatch told me there were safe houses. They gave me the location of this one," he answered, reaching up to touch the scratch on Luna's cheek.

She watched him as he reached up, and he brushed it gently with a frown. Before he could ask, she told him: "It was just from a piece of glass as we escaped Malfoy Manor… Would you prefer River or Lee?"

He nodded, although he could tell she wasn't telling him the full story, and answered, "Lee." although he liked the way the word river flowed past her lips. There was something hidden in those large, silvery eyes, but right now, he couldn't tell what it was. "I thought someone had hurt you," he said with a soft smile.

Luna smiled back. "Nobody hurt me."

And there was the lie.

Luna invited him into her living space, showing him up the stairs to where her room was—a cosy, but airy space—before leading him to the room opposite hers. At the sight of a bed and clean sheets, Lee couldn't help but smile, his knees feeling a bit weak at the prospect of not having to sleep rough tonight.

"Do you want to sleep now?" asked Luna with a knowing smile. He hesitated for a moment, and she added, "The shower is at the end of the corridor."

Under the warmth of the water from the shower, Lee allowed his head to clear for a moment. His source had been anonymous (as they all were), but he had them to thank for this luxury. He had a broadcast tomorrow night, and he'd be sure to say thank you then, but for now, the fluffy white towel hung next to the shower and the promise of a bed to sleep in made him feel almost giddy with pleasure.

After he had finished out of the shower, he dried himself off and tied the towel around his waist. The amount of dirt and grime that had come off of him had been slightly astounding, and he felt like a new person. He picked up his bundle of clothes from the floor, knowing he was going to have to cast a Scourgify on them, if he wanted to keep feeling this fresh, before wearing them again.

He entered his room to find Luna on her tiptoes next to the window. He paused for a second, unsure of what to do, before deciding to ask her what she was doing.

"Luna?"

At the sound of his voice, Luna spun around to face him, losing her balance slightly in the process. Lee was quick to react, a hand at her lower back to steady her. He didn't anticipate the way she arched away from him with a hiss—as if he'd hurt her.

"Are you alright?" he asked, concerned.

Luna turned to him with a slight smile on her face. "I was just surprised," she said, "and I was hanging up a chime in your room. It keeps away the Nargles."

She sounded slightly breathless, but Lee decided to take her word for it. "Thanks, Luna," he said with a smile. "I'm going to get some shut-eye after I've sorted out my clothes."

It was then that she seemed to register his state of undress, and he saw the way her eyes widened and her cheeks pinkened ever so slightly at the low-slung towel, and he let out a small chuckle as she turned her focus to his clothes.

"I'll get those cleaned for you," she said, and her voice was placid—like the surface of an undisturbed lake.

"You don't have to—"

But his protest was cut off by Luna's, "You deserve some rest, Lee."

"Thanks, Luna," he said gently, watching her as she practically floated out of the room with his bundle of clothes.

He sat on the edge of his bed after she left, needing some time to process what had just happened. There had always been something mysterious about Luna Lovegood, but that was just her nature. The way she was now… the _I'm fines_ seemed too forced, and her usually careless, light smile was… rigid. Perhaps it was what the war had done to her, but Lee didn't want to think it could have changed her so much.

He stood up and removed his towel, before realising that Luna had taken his only clothes. Trying not to panic, he turned around in a full circle before his eyes landed on an oak chest. As quickly as he could, he opened it and pulled out something white. It was a huge T-shirt, and some checkered pyjama bottoms. He guessed that they were made for guests of any size, and as he slid them on and fitted them with a shrinking spell, he sighed in content. The clothes were new, fresh, and clean, and that was more than he'd had for some months now.

In bed, Lee closed his eyes. Just as his eyes closed and sleep claimed him, he smiled at the thought of Luna listening to Potterwatch, and hoped that his show may have elicited a genuine smile whilst she had been listening.

The next morning dawned bright and clear, and Lee opened his eyes with a frown. Where was he?

Then he remembered. He was at the safe house with Luna.

He relaxed into the crisp sheets and a smile stretched across his face. The house felt safe, and he was with someone he knew, admittedly not very well, but he had warm sheets and clean pyjamas—and warm water!

Rather reluctantly, Lee pulled himself out of the bed and stretched. His feet padded over to the window and peering out he gauged from the position of the sun that it was… past midday? How was that possible?

Confused, Lee opened the door to his bedroom and left to go downstairs. Luna was already there, looking out of the window with a dreamy smile on her face.

"Luna?"

She spun around to look at him. "You finally woke up," she said, still smiling. "I came into your room to wake you for breakfast, but you were fast asleep and I didn't want to disturb you. It looked like you hadn't slept so peacefully for a while."

Lee's frown changed to a smile. "You'd be right on that point. I've been sleeping rough since Potterwatch began."

Luna's expression formed to one of concern. "Why?"

"Well, Miss Lovegood," he began with a grin, "that is a rather lengthy story, so I'm going to make us both a cup of tea and I can get to telling it."

Luna chuckled and nodded, pointing him to the right cupboard to find the cups. There was only one sofa, and after Lee made the two steaming drinks, he curled up beside Luna. The windchime was still swaying and chiming in the light breeze, and he wondered whether the window had ever been closed. It probably hadn't.

"Were you listening to Potterwatch in the very early episodes?" he asked.

"I listened from the very first one," she affirmed.

He nodded with a smile. "I'm flattered," he said, chuckling. "Well, after the first few episodes from my apartment in London, I realised that people…" He paused momentarily, unsure of how to phrase it. "People who didn't have Harry's or the Order's best interests at heart, may have been watching. It was after the sixth or seventh episode that my apartment was broken into. I told Kingsley about what happened and he said it would be best to leave—so I did."

Luna nodded thoughtfully. "I'm glad they didn't stay in your apartment."

Lee blinked, and he felt a flash of pain in his chest for Luna. She was unlucky to have been captured, and from her pensive look, she was thinking about a darker time. "I had to keep moving because they could detect where I was each time I settled—each time faster than the previous one. That's why I was a bit desperate about the lead the source gave me, and took the risk to come here. The signal can't be traced to safe houses." He was about to finish there when he remembered an odd detail. "Why did the wards let me through if you didn't know I was coming?"

Luna smiled gently. "I did know; we seem to have had the same source, and they seemed to have kept an eye on you since they told me to lower the wards minutes before you arrived."

Lee nodded, though he was surprised that Luna had taken the risk to lower the wards around the first safe space she had seen since the dungeons of Malfoy Manor. "I'm glad I get to broadcast in one steady place now; you'll get to see how the show happens," he said with a grin.

"I'm glad you're here too," said Luna, surprising him by moving closer and wrapping an arm around him.

Her light hair tickled his nose as he breathed, and he returned the gesture, running his fingers through her blonde mane as she relaxed against him.

They remained like that for quite some time, in silence, the steady chime from the window the perfect soundtrack as the two of them breathed in unison, their heartbeats joined in one irregular rhythm.

A laugh rumbled through him as Luna's breathing grew deeper and more steady, and he realised she had fallen asleep. He tilted her head and saw her face, so peaceful, but frowned at the scratch on her cheek and the bags under her eyes. It looked as if she hadn't slept in a while.

Gently, he stood up, carefully placing her head on a cushion and pulling the throw on the sofa down to wrap around her. Then, he retrieved his wand from the table and went to his room, pulling out a mobile phone from his chest of drawers. He dialled the number that would put him straight through to Kingsley, and he made his way back down the stairs as it rang. He reached the bottom of the stairs when the ringing cut off, and entered the living room just as Kingsley spoke.

"River?"

"That's me, Royal."

A release of breath sounded from the other end of the phone. "Thank Merlin for that. I thought that you'd gone and followed that tip and gotten yourself killed."

Lee scratched his head sheepishly. "Well, Royal…"

"What?" asked Kingsley, slowly.

"I followed the tip—"

"You did what?" exclaimed Kingsley. "What happened? Where are you now?"

"I found…" Lee trailed off, trying to think of a code name for Luna.

"You found what?"

"One of the prisoners at Malfoy Manor… er, Moonlight?"

There was a pause before Kingsley gasped, clicking on to who he was talking about. "Romulus and Rapier will be delighted to hear the news."

"They will, but Potterwatch needs to start in about five minutes so I'll get you on loudspeaker and start setting up."

"You always leave things last minute," said Kingsley with a small laugh.

Lee took a seat on the sofa and chuckled, putting Kingsley on loudspeaker. "Old habits die hard."

Kingsley remained quiet as Lee muttered some incantations to begin setting up. As he neared the end of the process, Kingsley spoke again.

"Do you think it would be a good idea to get L—Moonlight to speak on the show today?" he asked.

Lee paused for a moment, glancing over at Luna's sleeping form. "Moonlight's sleeping at the moment… if they wake up then I'll ask them to speak."

"Right," said Kingsley. "Ten seconds."

Luna stirred, but didn't wake, and smiling at her relaxed demeanor, Lee muttered the final incantation and began to speak.

"Welcome, Listeners to another broadcast of Potterwatch. I hope you are all safe, and continuing to fight. Royal?" prompted Lee.

"Thank you, River. We begin with good news tonight. Another prisoner who was held at Malfoy Manor has been located at a safe house, which brings our total to three. If you have anymore information or tips on where any of the others may be, please let us know. At the end of the show, River will provide you with a method to contact us anonymously."

"That I will do, Royal! Also, this week's charm is the protection charm. After our last broadcast where we appealed to you to cast protective charms over any Muggle dwellings near you, and of course your own, we had a number of people contact us to inform us they didn't know how to cast them. With transactions being monitored closely by the Ministry, it is understandable why many may fear to purchase a book that would instruct them how to do so. Simple protective charms are effective, but do not last long. We will begin with those and then move on to more complex charms."

From there, Kingsley took over, instructing the listeners on the incantations as well as the wand movements. Lee, already knowing how to cast protective charms and wards, took the time to check on Luna. She was still sleeping, but there was a frown on her face replacing the relaxed expression she had previously worn. As Kingsley's instructions drew to an end, Lee took over.

"Recently, we have heard reports from the Ministry that have been causing a climate of panic in our communities. We would like to dispel the rumours that V—" Lee cut himself off before he said the name. He had almost forgotten about the taboo. "He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named can kill with a glance. It is absolute newt shi—"

"What River means to say," said Kingsley, cutting Lee off smoothly, "is that the rumours are completely unfounded and should not be believed. If He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named _could_ kill with a glance, then he'd be roaming the streets and causing destruction. As we can see, he has his Death Eaters doing that, not his eyes."

"Exactly, Royal."

The broadcast carried on for exactly another ten minutes before Lee ended the show with: "That brings us to the end of another broadcast, dear Listeners. We are unsure about the next time we'll be able to broadcast, but rest assured, we will be back. Keep twiddling those dials, and the next password is: Leviosa. Stay safe, and keep fighting. Good night."

And with those words, Lee cut off the phone, and waved his wand to cut off the show. Looking again at Luna, he sighed. This war had already taken numerous casualties, and he didn't plan on standing by idly whilst it happened. Potterwatch was his only way to help at the moment, before he would have to go and physically fight in battle, which he guessed could be anytime soon. He remembered Luna as a carefree, young girl; she was Ginny's best friend.

Lee wondered just how long it had been since the two had seen each other.

It was around eight o'clock when Luna woke up with a gasp. Lee rushed over to the living room from the kitchen to see what had happened, and his heart dropped upon seeing the terrified expression on Luna's face. Spinning round to check the windows and doorways, Lee saw nothing that would be a cause for concern.

"What happened?" he asked, kneeling in front of Luna.

She was breathing heavily, as if she'd just run a mile. After a tense moment of waiting, Luna simply shook her head, and her mouth stretched into a smile. It was the first time he had noticed just how unnatural it was.

"Nightmares?" he asked, refusing to give up without any answer.

An expression of what could only be described as resignation fell on Luna's face, and she nodded. "I'm okay though," she hastened to reassure him.

Lee frowned, and sighed. "Do you want to come to the kitchen with me now that you're awake?" he asked, changing the subject. Right now, he didn't have a solution to Luna's problem, but he was going to find one.

"Were you cooking?" asked Luna with a smile.

Lee laughed. "I've been trying to make a salad, but I'm not doing too well. I wanted to put chicken in it, but there's all these spices, and—I'm sure you get it."

Luna stood with a chuckle, and he followed her into the kitchen for a walkthrough of spices he had never heard of in his life, but what came together to make one of the best tasting meals of his life.

The two of them took their plates into the living room, and sat on the same sofa they had earlier. They tucked in, Lee especially enthusiastic about the fact he was having another full meal after spending so long only eating the bare essentials, sometimes not even that. There was only a small portion of his meal left when Lee turned to Luna, and asked: "How long have you had the nightmares for?"

Luna paused, her forkful of salad hovering in mid-air. She seemed to be contemplating whether or not to answer. Lee didn't speak, not wanting to interrupt her train of thought.

"Malfoy Manor," she answered finally, and brought the fork to her mouth, resuming her eating. Lee didn't miss the way her hand shook slightly.

"Would you mind if I asked what happened there?" enquired Lee, his voice soft.

Luna smiled again, another pained one, and said: "A lot of things…" she trailed off before shaking her head. "It's more difficult than I thought it would be to talk about it."

Lee nodded in understanding, before standing up and stretching. "I've finished," he said. "That's the best meal I've had in a long time." Softening his tone, he added, "Thank you."

Luna smiled, and stood up as well, but Lee took her plate from her hands. "I'll wash up," he said, walking into the kitchen.

When he returned to the living room, Luna had her back to him, shutting the curtains. Her raised arm had lifted up her shirt, and a gasp that he couldn't contain left Lee's lips. Luna spun around with a panicked look on her face and Lee shook his head in disbelief.

"What did they do?" he whispered, making his way over to the blonde.

"A lot of things," answered Luna, with another one of those pained smiles, but this time, there were tears in her eyes too.

"Oh, Luna," said Lee. It was all he _could_ say before he gathered her up in his arms. Her arms wrapped around him and small, muffled sniffles filled the silence as Lee tried his best to process what he had just seen: a huge scratch in the shape of an 'E'.

He waited until the sniffles quietened and moved back to see if Luna was feeling any better. She wiped her eyes and shook her head. "It's in the past; it doesn't hurt anymore."

"Who… who did that?" asked Lee, ignoring the lie.

Luna took a deep breath. "Fenrir Greyback wasn't allowed to bite any of us, but… he was still allowed to visit. Bellatrix Lestrange visited too."

Lee felt sick. Of all the people he thought were the worst of Voldemort's followers, Fenrir and Bellatrix were right at the top. Taking a breath to steady himself Lee spoke again. "I'm sorry."

Luna frowned. "Why are you sorry?"

"Because of what happened," he answered.

"You didn't do it though," said Luna with a small smile.

"That's true, but still."

There was a quiet moment before Lee yawned.

"You should go to bed," suggested Luna.

Lee shook his head. "I'm not leaving you right after this."

Luna laughed. "I'll come upstairs with you then," she said.

Thinking about it for a moment, Lee nodded. "Alright, that sounds good."

They went into their separate rooms to get changed into their pyjamas, and then Luna returned to his room. She sat on the edge of his bed, not looking at all like she had just been crying into his chest.

"Luna?" asked Lee.

"Yes?"

"I know you've had a… draining day, but could… could I see?" Lee cut himself off, unsure of how to phrase the question.

However, Luna seemed to understand as she nodded and turned around with her back to him. "You've already seen the bottom of it," she said.

Lee reached out tentatively, pinching the light fabric of her nightclothes and lifting the back slowly. As he had suspected, the 'E' wasn't where the scratch ended. It carried on up Luna's back, until it stopped, just above her shoulder blades. When he read the clumsily-written word in full, it said 'MINE'. Unable to stop himself, Lee ran his fingers over the letters and let out a sigh.

"I'm sorry," was all he could say.

"You didn't do it, Lee," replied Luna gently, though he could hear the tension in her voice.

He let go of the fabric, letting it drop down and cover the scar, and Luna turned to face him again. There was a steeliness in her silver eyes that he had only just noticed, and for a moment he was overwhelmed with just how strong the woman in front of him was.

"I didn't, but you shouldn't have had to go through that," he said, his voice a bit hoarse.

Luna looked at him for a moment, and the first real smile Lee had seen since he had arrived, played on her lips.

"Nox," she whispered, and the lights went out, leaving the two of them to get into bed.

"Goodnight, Luna," said Lee.

Luna turned around to face him. "Goodnight, Lee," she whispered, and moved forward. Her lips met his for the briefest moment, and her fingers brushed his jaw lightly before she turned back around.

* * *

 _She lay in his arms for the entire night, and although Lee didn't know it, it was the first time she had slept a full night since her captivity at Malfoy Manor._


End file.
